I finally got around to watching this movie. I had been meaning/wanting to watch it for the longest time -- currently it conveniently happens to be on Netflix. Leonardo DiCaprio AND Matt Damon are in this movie during their prime (now they're kind of getting a little old...), which makes it doubly appealing.
Some other famous actors like Jack Nicholson are in the movie too, but I think he's weird looking so I don't go out of my way to watch movies he's in. The Shining was a weird movie, and dare I say, bad, even though it's famous and was directed by the famous director Stanley Kubrick. I watched it thinking it might be good because it's famous and I thought I should give more of Kubrick's work a look after watching Full Metal Jacket, but The Shining has disabused me of that notion. (well, I still might give A Clockwork Orange a try since it's also famous and maybe Eyes Wide Shut because Tom Cruise, but we'll see)
The Departed was directed by Martin Scorsese, also a famous director and who has done a number of movies with Leonardo DiCaprio, including Shutter Island which I thought was quite good and mind-fucky in a good way. Directors whose work I've enjoyed I do try to watch other movies they've done -- David Fincher (The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo), Martin Scorsese (Shutter Island), Darren Aronofsky (Requiem for a Dream), and I think maybe one other guy whose name I'm forgetting. I realize this set of directors has a diversity problem (as do famous directors in general), so if anyone wants to point me to dark thriller type movies directed by women and/or people of color, that'd be fun -- always worth it to expand one's horizons like such. I really should probably try to watch more movies directed by people other than (usually old) white men. I guess Boys Don't Cry is a start; that one was directed by a woman. Aside from that I can't really think of any others off the top of my head. Maybe I could become a movie director???
Back on topic, although the issue of diversity (really, in pretty much any field) is an important one. The Departed was a good movie, although it wasn't spectacularly mind-blowing in the way Shutter Island was and it didn't leave as much of an impression on me as Requiem for a Dream. Regardless, it was pretty solid and I wasn't disappointed -- I didn't think it was a waste of 2 and a half hours. This means it was better than, say, No Country for Old Men which I do think was a waste of time to watch and was a disappointment. While we're at it, Zodiac was also a disappointment (it could've been way better!!)
It was a pretty brutal/violent movie but I don't really mind that -- kind of comes with the territory/subject matter. It's actually at least the third movie set in Boston that I've watched which I thought was sort of interesting to note. The others have been Spotlight (about journalists) and Black Mass (based on a true story about mobsters with a brief Peter Sarsgaard appearance).
Matt Damon and Leo were good in their roles although I thought perhaps Leo's character could've been developed a little more -- the movie could've been a bit longer to include something like that. I also found the ending a little anticlimactic, actually -- I think I would've preferred a different ending, something that has a bit more panache. Although I can see why they decided to have it end the way it did.
It vaguely reminded me a bit of Heat, but I think I liked this movie better -- I feel like Heat kind of dragged a bit but The Departed kept up a nice suspenseful pace, lots of deceit/deception. It could've been a bit more suspenseful -- I suppose perhaps I wish it had more of a sense that the stakes were higher. Yes, it could've been more suspenseful.
Overall, perfectly decent movie, not a waste of time, Leo and Matt were good, although I think there was a little room for improvement. It wasn't mind-blowing, but I'm glad I watched it. I liked it better than Black Mass which was also focused on the subject of mobsters in Boston. 4/5
Oh, and there was a cool-looking Brutalist building featured briefly -- I think it might have been supposed to be the police headquarters or something.
I just looked it up -- I had been wondering if The Departed was based on a true story at all and if so, to what extent, and it turns out it was! It was based on the same people/characters featured in Black Mass, so that's kind of interesting... a fictionalized take on that scenario whereas Black Mass was explicitly based on actual people/events.
I still have not watched Inception, also starring Leo. Years ago (literally!) I got it on DVD but still I have not seen it. You'd think this one would be next on my list.
Also, as a rhetorical question, is Leonardo DiCaprio or Matt Damon a better actor/more famous? Perhaps one is the better actor as well as more famous, or maybe it's split, or maybe they're about equal.
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